HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court has held that the Hanuman temple near Nampally Railway Station is a public temple governed by the Endowments department and not a Math, dismissing a writ petition challenging the classification.
Justice K Sarath upheld a state government memo declaring the institution a temple, ruling that it was issued after due inquiry and did not warrant interference.
The petition was filed by Mahant Rambharos Das, challenging a 2013 memo issued by the principal secretary and seeking to set aside a 1989 gazette notification that notified the institution as a temple. The petitioner also sought recognition of the institution as a Math under Section 6(d) of the Telangana Charitable and Hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments Act. In 2008, the regional joint commissioner of the Endowments department had already treated the institution as a temple under Section 6(c).
Counsel for the petitioner argued that the institution was founded as a Math by ancestors beginning with Guru Mahant Mohan Das, was registered as such during the Nizam period, and had samadhis of Mohan Das, Rambharos Das and Moti Das within the premises.
Counsel also contended that the government had recognised Rambharos Das as Mahant in 1995 and that treating this institution differently from others such as Kalika Das Math was discriminatory. The memo was also challenged on the grounds of lack of hearing.
Opposing the plea, Government Pleader Mangilal Naik submitted that the institution was a Hanuman temple established in 1937 by residents near the Nampally Goods Shed and notified as a temple in 1989. Rambharos Das, he said, was appointed only as a trustee to manage properties and donations, not as a Mahant, and there were no samadhis within the temple premises. The petition, it was argued, was an attempt to claim temple property by misrepresenting facts.
The court noted that the petitioner had earlier accepted the temple notification and had taken a contradictory stand later. It held that the records produced did not support the reliefs sought and that the Endowments assistant commissioner was empowered only to appoint a trustee, not a Mahant. The memo issued by the principal secretary was found to be legally sustainable and the writ petition was dismissed.
HC orders GITAM to pay 50% power dues in 3 weeks
The Telangana High Court on Thursday directed GITAM (Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management) University to deposit Rs 54 crore, representing 50% of its outstanding electricity dues, within three weeks as a condition for restoration of power supply.
A bench of Justice Moushumi Bhattacharya and Justice Gadi Praveen Kumar passed the order while partly allowing a writ appeal filed by the Southern Power Distribution Company of Telangana Limited (SPDCL), which had challenged an earlier order directing restoration of supply without payment of arrears.
GITAM University, located in Rudraram under the Sangareddy Circle, is stated to owe Rs 118.13 crore to SPDCL towards accumulated electricity dues. The dispute arose from a writ petition filed by the University seeking a stay on a demand notice issued by SPDCL in September 2025 for Rs 118.13 crore.
On January 9, 2026, Justice T Madhavi Devi had directed restoration of electricity supply. Challenging that order, SPDCL argued that restoring power without insisting on payment of substantial dues was unjustified, particularly as the arrears had accumulated over nearly two decades.
While disposing of the appeal, the bench directed the Secretary of GITAM University, Sangareddy, to deposit Rs 54 crore within three weeks and clarified that restoration of electricity supply would be subject to compliance with the condition.